PD Class of '13 has fulfilled its promise

(Brian Spurlock, USA Today…)

December 23, 2013|By Dave Johnson, djohnson@dailypress.com

From the start, when they were skinny and baby faced, the potential was there. And it didn't take long to conclude the Class of 2013 would be the most talented in Peninsula District basketball history.

Now, it's the next level — Division I hoops. Hampton's Anthony Barber and Phoebus' Troy Williams each plays for a big-name school you often see on ESPN. Both are starting — Barber at N.C. State, Williams at Indiana.

Phoebus' James Daniel is a starter, too, and he's Howard's leading scorer. Hampton's Jordan Baker is the top reserve at Old Dominion. Kecoughtan's Greg Alexander isn't getting the kind of minutes he had hoped for at East Carolina, but it's still early.

It is, to quote the 1990s TV show, "A Different World." The game on the floor, the academics in the classroom, and the college life itself are nothing like what they saw in high school.

"It's real fun," Daniel said. "But it's also a lot tougher. Everybody is good at this level. And there are really no off days in college basketball."

The only bad news involves Kecoughtan grad Rodney Bullock, who is now at Providence. He's been suspended since early November for what the school termed "not upholding (his) responsibilities as (a) student athlete." Friars coach Ed Cooley hinted there might be some news on that soon.

The Class of '13 headliners were Barber and Williams, good friends who played AAU together. Barber became the all-time scoring leader in Peninsula District history and led the Crabbers to the Group AAA state championship as a junior. Williams broke 1,000 points at Phoebus before spending his senior year at Oak Hill.

Going into Saturday's home game against East Carolina, Barber was the Wolfpack's second-leading scorer at 12.0 points a game on 48 percent shooting from the field. He's also State's assist leader.

He didn't get off to a great start. On the first day of pre-season practice, he banged heads with teammate T.J. Warren going for a loose ball and sustained a concussion. He missed two weeks, which put him behind the rest of the Wolfpack's stacked backcourt.

"It set me back, and I knew it put me behind," Barber said. "But I wasn't too worried. I just came back and worked hard. I kind of thought I'd be starting, but I knew it wouldn't be given to me. I had to do everything I could to get that spot, and I did."

Barber came off the bench for State's first four games but he still got starter's minutes (30 a night). After a 22-point night against North Carolina Central, in which he went 12-of-16 from the free throw line (sound familiar?), he made his first start. He's been there ever since.

The speed of the game is faster. But more times than not, he's still the fastest player on the floor.

"It's just that natural speed I've got," he said.

Williams has started every game this season and is the Hoosiers' sixth-leading scorer at 8.3 points a game. His best game so far was a 22-point, eight-rebound night against Washington in Madison Square Garden on ESPN.

"Troy was fantastic," Indiana coach Tom Crean said that night. "He played really hard the entire game. He got more numbers in the first half than the second half, (but) I thought he played extremely hard the whole game."

Of course, he's already making highlights. His follow dunk against Syracuse in the Carrier Dome was replayed for days. Crean kinda-sorta compares Williams to former Hoosier All-American (and current Orlando Magic guard) Victor Oladipo.

"I never compare his game per se to Victor's, but we do compare the efficiency stats," Crean said. "We do compare the hustle stats to Victor's because basically (of) the position that he's playing."

The Class of '13 member who's lighting it up the most is Daniel, who is the Bison's leader in scoring (19.8 ppg), 3-pointers (40), and free throw percentage (.824). He's actually shooting better from the 3-point arc (41.7 percent) than he is in front of it (29.2 percent).

In his debut, Daniel scored 28 points and went 6-of-10 from 3s. He had 26 against Old Dominion.

"He's had an unbelievable year," Howard coach Kevin Nickelberry said. "The sky's the limit for him. He only gets better every day. And he's an even better kid, which isn't normal this day and age."

Unlike Barber and Williams, Daniel has been asked to carry the scoring load from day one. Which, given the role he played at Phoebus, wasn't unfamiliar.

"It's always nice scoring, but I just want to do what he asks me to do," Daniel said of Nickelberry. "I just had a role to fill. Anything to help the team win."

Baker, one of three former Peninsula District players on ODU's roster, is also playing his usual role. Just like at Hampton, he's a defensive stopper and occasional threat from the 3-point arc.